Digest

DIGEST

Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle News Service

Published
5:30 am CDT, Tuesday, October 17, 2006

TECHNOLOGY

Microsoft to push privacy standards

REDMOND, WASH. - Microsoft Corp. is preparing to release privacy guidelines based on its own internal practices in hopes of getting companies to adopt more cohesive standards for safeguarding personal information.

COMPENSATION

Retirement to bring $5.1 million a year

UnitedHealth Group will pay its departing chief $5.1 million a year for the rest of his life and a $6.5 million lump sum, according to a calculation of his severance benefits by the Corporate Library, a watchdog group that's criticized his pay before.

He also has stock options that were worth $1.8 billion as of the end of 2005.

McGuire, 59, has agreed to retire by Dec. 1, and he stepped down from his post as chairman on Sunday. The move came after a company-sponsored investigation determined that many of the company's stock options were backdated to make them more favorable for the recipients, including McGuire, other executives, and thousands of UnitedHealth employees.

VEHICLES

Oshkosh will buy lift equipment firm

Military and commercial vehicle maker Oshkosh Truck is aiming to take advantage of the spike in commercial real estate construction with a $3 billion cash purchase of JLG Industries, a maker of equipment that lifts people and materials into the air.

JLG is based in McConnellsburg, Pa. Oshkosh, based in Oshkosh, Wis., has 9,400 employees and will be adding JLG's 4,000, it said. There will be no cuts to factory jobs, Oshkosh said.

ENERGY

Russia threatens Lukoil's licenses

MOSCOW - In a sign of continuing turmoil in Russian oil, the government threatened to revoke oil-field licenses held by the country's largest private energy concern, Lukoil.

The action affected 19 of 406 licenses owned by Lukoil, a company that is 20 percent owned by Houston-based ConocoPhillips. Lukoil said it expected to resolve the complaints soon.

Still, the enforcement action was significant because the same regulator, Oleg Mitvol, suspended a permit last month for a $22 billion project operated by Royal Dutch Shell on Sakhalin Island.